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Rúben Neves was the hero for the Portuguese side with a last-gasp decisive strike in their World Cup qualifying clash against Ireland, following Caoimhín Kelleher had denied a penalty from the veteran forward.

Match Overview

Neves headed home during injury time to secure a narrow victory, four years after the star striker had scored twice at the death to overcome a stubborn Irish side.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men appeared poised to depart the Portuguese capital with a well-earned point, but ultimately left empty-handed, despite restoring a good deal of pride with a battling performance that erased some of the recollections of last month’s embarrassing loss in Armenia.

Nevertheless, the loss leaves them facing elimination, with their first three qualifying group matches having yielded only a solitary draw. They need to beat Armenia in Dublin on Tuesday to keep alive any chance of securing a qualifying spot.

Major Incidents

• Kelleher looked to have earned Ireland a draw when he superbly saved Ronaldo’s spot-kick with his trailing leg after a Portuguese player’s effort had hit an Irish defender’s hand.
• The match-winner came to his side’s rescue in the opening moments of stoppage time when he directed Trincão’s cross past Kelleher.

Other Group Results

Group F

Hungary boosted their hopes of advancing by securing their first win with a two-goal victory over the Armenian side, climbing above their opponents into the runner-up spot behind the group leaders in Group F. Daniel Lukacs provided Hungary the lead in the opening period and a teammate secured the victory in second-half added time.

England’s Group

Serbia slipped to a 1-0 loss at home to the Albanian squad, with the result meaning England can now secure their qualification from their qualifying group by beating Latvia on Tuesday. An Albanian striker netted the decisive strike for Albania with a neat shot in late stoppage time.

Latvia struggles in Group K persisted as they were forced to a two-all tie at home by the Andorran team. Ian Olivera scored for the away side late on from time to earn them their initial draw of the qualifiers and extend Latvia’s winless run to five games.

Spain’s Group

The Spanish national team continued their dominant qualifying group campaign with a comfortable victory over the Georgian side after goals from Jéremy Pino and Mikel Oyarzabal in Elche. The result continued the European champions’ perfect record in the qualifiers, having notched eleven strikes in three matches without conceding.

Despite the absence of players such as Lamine Yamal, another forward, and the midfield anchor due to fitness issues, the Spanish squad demonstrated their superiority against a Georgian team that spent the majority of the game defending deep. Spain dominated the encounter with more than 80% of the ball, and the visitors did not have one shot on target or create a scoring opportunity, with only shot-stopper their keeper averting a rout.

The scorer opened the scoring in the 24th minute from a expertly taken dead-ball move, and his compatriot secured the victory in the second period with a stunning free kick after the Georgian keeper had denied Ferran Torres’s penalty.

Other Scores

• The Turkish national team bounced back with a comprehensive victory over Bulgaria to stay close to Spain in Group E. The Spanish club’s a young talent was among the goal-getters.
• Italy improved their hopes of at least making the qualifying playoffs with a 3-1 win away to the Estonian team, thanks to strikes from a forward, Mateo Retegui, and Francesco Pio Esposito.

Gennaro Gattuso commented: “Our focus isn’t on the group leaders or our next opponents. We are aware of our responsibilities.”

Italy missed out for the previous two global tournaments, on two occasions missing out in the qualifying rounds, and the feared playoff path now appears their most likely chance after Norway’s 5-0 win over Israel in Group I. The Norwegians are top on 18 points from six games. Italy have twelve points with a game in hand on their competitors and are a trio of points ahead of Israel. The Estonian squad remain fourth on three points. The top teams advance automatically for the World Cup, with the runners-up going into the playoffs.

The Italian national team face their rivals on Tuesday, where a victory would cement second spot and, while they can still mathematically catch the group leaders on the table, the Norwegians’ far superior goal ratio means a playoff spot probably awaits for the Italian squad.